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Sling Shot
Sling Shot is a pay-per-ride reverse bungee attraction located in the Oktoberfest section of Kings Island. It opened in 2002 and was manufactured by Funtime. Several clones of this ride with the same name exist in various theme parks around the world, including fellow Cedar Fair parks Cedar Point, Carowinds and Canada's Wonderland, as well as numerous parks operated by Cedar Fair's primary rival, Six Flags. It is also one of two currently operating pay-per-ride attractions at Kings Island, with the other being Xtreme Skyflyer in the Action Zone section of the park. History and Experience The ride opened in 2002, being the first of its kind to open in a Paramount park, as well as a Cedar Fair park when they took over operations in 2006. Throughout its lifespan, riders have been able to purchase videos of their experience on the ride as a souvenir. Originally, these were offered via VHS tapes, but in recent years, the videos are now saved onto USB flash drives. Ride Experience The structure of the ride features two tall metal structures. A similar set of structures are also used for fellow pay-per-ride attraction Xtreme Skyflyer. Between the structures is a set of cables that link to a small ride vehicle shaped like a capsule, but instead of solid walls, the seats are surrounded by a series of metal pipes that make up the capsule. The capsule only has room for two guests, though one can ride alone if they wish to. Once guests are properly restrained into the two-seater capsule, the capsule is tilted backward with the riders facing the sky. Sometimes, the ride operator will give a countdown for releasing the capsule into the air, only to launch it early before reaching zero in an attempt to further terrify any onboard guests that are noticeably scared. Once launched, the capsule flies upward, in a similar manner to an object launched by the ride's namesake contraption. After a few moments of flying up and down, the capsule will be slowly lowered back to the ground, and reconnected to the base that it was launched from, before being tilted back to its original position. Guests then exit on the side where they paid for tickets, opposite of the ride's entrance. Trivia * This is one of several attractions of the same name throughout the world, including three other Cedar Fair parks. The ride's manufacturer, Funtime, even features a replica in their own park in Australia, the same country as the company headquarters. * Sling Shot ''is one of three rides at Kings Island to offer video footage of guests' ride experience as a souvenir. The other attractions to do this are ''Mystic Timbers and Flight of Fear. However, this was only available on Flight of Fear for the 2007 season and has since been removed. ** As for Mystic Timbers, the video footage that is recorded only features the first drop with the tree. * This is the first ride that originally opened at Kings Island to later open at another Cedar Fair park. The second is Delirium, which was later replicated at Kings Dominion. Category:Thrill Rides Category:Current Attractions Category:Oktoberfest Category:Separate Fee Attractions Category:Pay-Per-Ride Attractions Category:Outdoor Attractions